The project is being released by New York City-based Young Pals Records International, helmed by co-composers/producers Ayhan Sahin and Dennis DelGaudio, with Album Coordinator Tom Gallaher. Famed photographer Jose Quintero lensed artwork for the album, with mastering by New York City’s esteemed Sterling Sound.

“This album is very significant to me, because I’m finally recording my own creation. There is a time and place for everything, and this is the perfect moment for me to release my music,” Marroquin says. “The process was a sacred experience: It’s you, the music and your mind going to a place where you interpret and express what each song is saying in the most intimate, honest way. I close my eyes and lose myself in the meaning of the lyrics… and my voice follows.”

Accompanying “El Mundo Era Mio,” Marroquin’s new website biancamarroquin.com will debut in early May, with an online “Launch Party” on the day of release, where fans can chat live with the ingénue and hear her perform acoustically, beginning at 4 p.m. (Eastern). She will also appear on Univision’s “Despierta America” on May 12, performing launch single “One Lie/No Mas,” with a live band.

The album’s title “El Mundo Era Mio” was Marroquin’s vision for the overall theme of her solo album, reflecting her missive of maintaining positivity: “The world was mine. Life is short. Stay forward. Accept, learn the lesson, let go and open to receive what’s next,” she says. “Never lose hope. Let your faith be greater than your fears.”

As a whole, the project is a wondrous showcase for her vocal versatility. One moment, Marroquin imparts a guttural growl akin to Alanis Morrissette and the next, soars as a definitive Celine Dion-worthy diva. First single “One Lie” is the consummate showcase for her gifts, a sweeping, full-bodied pop/rock tour de force with acoustic guitars & tinkling piano amid a theme of redemption; while album opener “Gone,” a giddy, jangly rock anthem, offers a fervent froth of foot-stomping beats and acoustic instrumentation.

Other highlights include joyous dance-club twirler “You Blow Me Away,” one of those windows down, pedal to the metal summer-ready refrains; hit-worthy lovesick ballad “Something More Than Sideways”; and haunting ballad “Marquee,” power packed with taut strings and cello, which delivers a universal missive about falling hard… and searching for the power within to restore confidence. She sings, “Been so long since I’ve wondered who I am, gotta put my name back in lights… Marquee.”

Among songs that Marroquin wrote is emotive Spanish-language ballad “Salvame” (“Save Me”). She says, “I wrote this about a person fighting for their life, as they implore their lover to stand by and pray for their soul. Their steadfast love is the only hope for salvation.” She also wrote the title track “El Mundo Era Mio” (“The World Was Mine”), which amps the tempo with lovely acoustic instrumentation and pounding percussion; and reinterpreted first single “One Lie” with a Spanish-language lyric.

Hispanic audiences are intimately acquainted with Bianca Marroquin. As a triple threat entertainer—singer, dancer and actress—she plays Roxie Hart on Broadway’s “Chicago” the musical, winning the Helen Hayes Award for Best Actress in a Musical at Washington’s Kennedy Center. She also won five awards from the Mexican Critics Association, including Best Actress. Theater roles at home include “Beauty and the Beast,” “Rent,” “Mary Poppins,” “The Vagina Monologues” and “The Phantom of the Opera.”

On Broadway, she is the first Mexican actress to ever headline a show—and in 2014, her role as Roxie Hart in “Chicago” was renewed for another full year. She has also performed on the Great White Way in “In the Heights” and “The Pajama Game.” And in March, Marroquin was named the first-ever National Ambassador for Viva Broadway, a partnership with the Hispanic community.

In addition, Marroquin served as one of three judges during all four seasons of Univision’s reality dance competition series “Mira Quien Baila,” the Spanish-language franchise of “Dancing With the Stars”; and she judged reality series “Pequeños Gigantes.” Televisa cast her as the main protagonist in telenovela “Esperanza del Corazón” (she also sang the show’s theme song). And she is a Judge on TeleVisa’s new reality talent show “Bailando Por Un Sueno,” which launched April 24 in Mexico City.

Now, with the release of “El Mundo Era Mio,” Marroquin is ready to check off yet another career achievement. She offers, “This album has so many different and contrasting messages. In the end, it’s about life’s journey and the different paths we take to gain knowledge. Our most valuable lessons turn us into feisty, fearless and proud individuals. You live and learn. And that is life worth living.”

Marroquin adds about the release of her first album: “I’ve dreamed of this moment all of my life. I can’t wait for my songs to catch light. I have learned to trust that there is a time and place for everything. No earlier, no later… but now.”